Everyone uses the phrase ‘love goes through the stomach’ when their loved one serves them delicious food. But is there any truth to that, or is it just a nice saying? And why is it that you are less hungry when you are in love? Stomach specialist Maridi Aerts of UZ Brussel explains.
Suzanna, 82, recently told via @instagrannies that falling in love at a later age still feels as intense as before. “We couldn’t miss each other for a second. The first few weeks I also had terrible stomach aches. I went to the doctor, who thought I might have appendicitis. He sent me to the clinic, where they examined me completely… and found nothing. Turns out I didn’t have butterflies in my stomach, but sparrows. Yes, measuring love, classical medicine does not yet have devices for that.”
Does love really go through the stomach?
A wonderful story that immediately makes stomach specialist Maridi Aerts smile. Infatuation is a diagnosis that she too has never made with her patients. “If you ask me if the expression ‘love goes through the stomach’ is theoretically correct, the answer is unfortunately no”, laughs the doctor. “Love and attraction between two people is a complex neurobiological network. There are several hormones that play a role in this, such as serotonin, noradrenaline and dopamine. The interplay between all these hormones makes you feel in love.”
Your feeling of hunger is also regulated by hormones, although these are largely other hormones. “That process of falling in love takes place in the beginning of the small intestine and in your brain. One of the most important hormones in that process is cholestyokinin, which ensures the feeling of satiety and is produced in the duodenum.”
When you’re in love, your body produces oxytocin, the hormone that signals your brain to reduce your appetite.
When you are in love, the hormones of those two processes come into contact with each other. “Your body then produces oxytocin. This hormone plays an important role in those feelings of being in love, but it also regulates our appetite. The hormone gives your brain a signal that causes you to lose your appetite.”
The feeling of butterflies in the stomach, on the other hand, is more due to adrenaline. “When we find something exciting, we produce adrenaline. Then the muscles of the stomach wall contract, which our brain interprets as a tingling sensation. That is why people sometimes lose weight when they are in love.”
Is there a link between our eating habits and who we fall in love with?
The stomach specialist has a suspicion where the link between love and the stomach comes from, although it has nothing to do with the biology of our body. “Rather with how we treat each other socially. I suspect the expression refers to the caring aspect. In the past, and perhaps even today, caring for someone you love has often been equated with providing that person with good food. When you are well cooked for you, you feel loved. Or maybe the expression refers to food that contains so-called aphrodisiacs. These are foods that, rightly or wrongly, are considered aphrodisiac.”
Research has shown that people are more likely to fall in love with someone who has similar dietary preferences.
And yet science has also found a link between dietary habits and the partner that makes our hearts beat faster and our appetite disappear. “Research has shown that people are more likely to fall in love with someone who has similar dietary preferences.” Are you someone who likes to go to a restaurant, loves exotic flavors or especially pays attention to how healthy something is? Then there is a good chance that your loved one has a similar ‘food vibe’. “That in itself is not surprising”, concludes Maridi Aerts. “It can also be said about many other areas of life: your hobbies, work, interests, and so on.”
Even if science doesn’t entirely agree: for us love always goes a bit through the stomach, especially during a cozy candlelit dinner.
Read also:
From Antwerp to Brussels: 10x romantic food on Valentine’s Day. “This is where you impress your lover” (+)
Are aphrodisiacs real aphrodisiacs or an expensive joke? “Oysters contain zinc, which plays a role in sperm cell production”
Love goes through the stomach: 5x the ideal Valentine’s Day breakfast to surprise your partner with
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